‘An outsider in our midst’ Narratives of Neil Lennon, soccer & ethno-religious bigotry in the Scottish press[1] Introduction Over the past three decades social scientists have studied soccer as a site for expressing social identities. Some of this research has examined the discourses of nationhood and ethnic identity that surround the game. This work has partly exposed sentiments of prejudice that sustain ideologies of otherness and marginalize individuals and groups within nations. This paper offers a critique of certain media narratives concerning soccer and those of ‘difference’ in contemporary Scotland, in particular those who have Irishness as their different identity. In Scotland, in both historical and contemporary contexts, the dominant discourse of otherness is manifest as ethno-religious prejudices directed against the Irish Catholic diaspora, the community that is ‘the other’ within Scotland. These discourses of otherness are manifest in relation to a range of social and cultural practices and institutions that are most closely associated with this diaspora community. Soccer, in particular Celtic FC, is one such institution; on occasion certain individuals associated with the club have also been targets for this prejudice.[2] The ethno-religious prejudices directed at Celtic FC and those of Irish descent associated with the club are illustrative of the ideology of bigotry that has sectarianised Scottish society since at least the mid-nineteenth century. This bigotry, a particular form of racism, has been denied by many but is identified by others as ‘Scotland’s shame’.[3] Scotland, like all national communities, has its own national myth:[4] the narrative or story that helps us to define ourselves to ourselves, and to others. It 2 functions as part of a collective national consciousness or identity. Part of the central element of the ‘Scottish myth’ is our ‘inherent egalitarianism’.[5] Moreover this myth assumes Scots are ‘egalitarian by dint of racial characteristics, of deep social values’.[6] The discourse of otherness directed against the Irish Catholic diaspora community exposes the problems associated with this collective national self-image. The focus here is soccer player Neil Lennon of Celtic FC. Lennon has been depicted as the antagonistic hard-man of Scottish soccer, an image that has been reproduced in relation to alleged incidents in his private life. But his personal biography marks Lennon as an outsider in Scotland; the man whose presence evokes in some, the values and sentiments Scotland denies. This article principally examines some strands of the public discourse surrounding Neil Lennon during one period in his Celtic career, autumn of 2005. During this period he was the subject of a pejorative commentary that integrated his status as outsider. The critique illustrates how the presence of ideologies of otherness in public discourses exposes the myth of Scotland’s self-image as an egalitarian and inclusive society. Media narratives of public sports figures A number of scholars have explored representations of sports stars – predominantly men - in the popular media. Much of the research has concentrated on a constellation of ideologies concerning masculinities, moralities, sporting ethics and nationhood but representations of racism, celebrity and consumption have also featured.[7] Three points arising from these studies are relevant here. First, the popular media (television, newspapers, magazines, biographies) narrativize the achievements of individual sports figures and specific events in their lives, often in ways that cast them in the role of villain, fool or hero. Second, most of what the public ‘knows’ about such individuals is learned through the selective lens of media constructed stories. 3 These are often constructed to ‘prioritize, personalize and sensationalize characters’ in order to maximize audience attention.[8] Third, the narrativization of sports figures is embedded in the dominant ideologies and discourses of a particular society. Consequently popular media narratives are one of the means by which a society can provide structured maps of meaning to its past, its traditions, its image of itself, and the nature of social relations within it.[9] These comments are important. The media narratives that concentrate on Lennon are part of the maps of meaning reveal important issues about Scotland’s self-image and social relations within the community. At this juncture it is also worth highlighting one characteristic of mediated communications in Scotland vis-à-vis the limited scale of ‘the communicative space of the Scottish public sphere’.[10] In this limited but competitive market stories concerning Celtic and their Glasgow rivals Rangers FC are crucial in securing an audience. One consequence is a strong interconnectedness of personnel working across Scotland’s national (sports) media organisations, who seek to secure contacts with both clubs. This close environment and the pressure on newspapers to secure ‘headline-grabbing’ material have contributed to sensationalized and personalized narratives that have been associated with Neil Lennon during his Celtic career. The negative and sensationalized commentary surrounding Neil Lennon during autumn 2005 was not a sudden development in the Scottish press. Rather it amplified narratives that have suffused some newspapers’ commentaries about him since he signed for Celtic in December 2000. This is illustrated through a profile of the player in relation to this established discourse. 4 Neil Lennon: soccer villain, urban rogue? In contemporary soccer Neil Lennon is arguably the antithesis of the global icons that dominate newspaper headlines. Players like Beckham, Ronaldinho or Zidane are celebrated as creative players and prolific goal-scorers who have graced some of world soccer’s most engaging clubs and national sides. In contrast Lennon is a less glamorous figure who does not rank amongst the ‘the soccerati’[11] of this global sport. Lennon is reported to have secured wealth and a comfortable lifestyle from his career in professional soccer, but his path to the top has been gradual, not meteoric. More importantly it was crafted at some of English soccer’s unfashionable clubs (Manchester City, Crewe Alexandra and Leicester City) and with one of international soccer’s less successful sides (Northern Ireland). Celtic FC, Lennon’s current club, perhaps carries greater allure in the global game. In soccer parlance Lennon is a holding midfield player and ball winner, a role he carries out with proficiency, technique and consistency, though he has a low goal- scoring record. His current manager says it is an unattractive, but essential role;[12] it is therefore a compliment to describe Lennon as ‘a specialist in negativity’[13] whose reading of the game ‘renders an [opposing team’s] attack innocuous.[14] Some aspects of Lennon’s on-field persona embody the components of hegemonic masculinity associated with traditional men’s sports. He has a muscular though short and stocky frame, a reputation for strong but fair tackling and an aura of tough self-reliance that is acknowledged by his managers and team-mates. Lennon plays with disciplined aggression and, on occasion, the raw emotions that are celebrated in a man’s game. He is a passionate competitor who admits: ‘I’m paid to win football matches by hook or by crook’ adding ‘if it meant having to stand on my granny on a football pitch, then I would.’[15] 5 Neil Lennon signed for Celtic FC on 7 December 2000. Amidst the conjecture about his potential contribution to Celtic two facts – neither related to his proficiency as a player - were prominent in the media: (i) Lennon had joined the club he supported since childhood; (ii) that he was a Catholic from Northern Ireland.[16] In combination these two facts have had an impact on Neil Lennon, as a footballer and as a private citizen with a public profile. Since joining Celtic he has featured in a variety of stories in the Scottish press, many of which had little to do with his accomplishments as a player. The litany of headlines concerning Neil Lennon encompasses incidents associated with soccer and his private life. Within three months of joining Celtic Lennon was booed by a section of Northern Ireland supporters during international matches in Belfast. Former Celtic and Northern Ireland player Anton Rogan received similar treatment, but Lennon and his family were subjected to more serious abuse. In August 2002 he retired from international soccer, aged 31, after receiving a death threat (alleged to have come from loyalist paramilitary sources) prior to a friendly match in Belfast. Lennon is emphatic such incidents ‘never’ occurred during his international career as a Crewe or Leicester player; they started he says ‘because of the choice of club [Celtic], they saw me as a symbol of something that they detested.[17] Death threats against him were painted on walls near his parents’ home County Armagh but also on supporters’ websites of other clubs in Scotland. A feature of Lennon’s Celtic career is the barracking directed towards him by opposing fans. It is not unusual for particular players to be unpopular; in Lennon’s case it may contribute to an atmosphere in which he thrives. Most claim he is targeted because they perceive him to be an arrogant, ill-tempered, undisciplined hard-man; others claim his physique, an odd gait (the result of a back injury and operation that 6 suspended his early career for 12 months) and lack of speed are behind their derision. Such notions draw partly on his on-field persona. Lennon ‘is no innocent on a football park’; nor, in certain circumstances, has he been ‘some kind of Kofi Annan emissary for peace and harmony’.[18] Nonetheless popular media commentaries may misrepresent the player or exaggerate incidents in which he has been involved. Such narratives fuel an inaccurate perception that Lennon is one of soccer’s villains. There is another dimension to the barracking directed at Lennon around Scottish soccer stadiums.